CBC and Bell Media team with Snapchat

The mobile-focused social platform has signed its first deals for Canadian-made content.

Snapchat has signed content agreements with the CBC and Bell Media, making the two media companies the first Canadian partners to create original, local content for its Discover and Our Stories features.

While Snap has not yet announced the nature of the content both parties will be producing, founder Evan Spiegel said in the company’s third-quarter earnings call that professional journalism continues to play an important role on Snapchat.

Professional publishers have partnered with Snapchat in the U.S. to create content for both its ad-supported Discover platform (which features new series and content from the various publishers on a daily basis) and the Our Stories feature (which curates user and professionally made stories around specific events such as the Olympics, VidCon or even the recent string of U.S. hurricanes).

American partners include Vice, NBC and CNN. Original Snapchat shows include NBC News’ Stay Tuned and CNN’s The Update, both of which produce daily content.

Snapchat also launched a publishing program for college newspapers, and increased the number of featured stories focused on breaking news.

Spiegel also said content is becoming an increasingly important part of Snapchat’s businesses, and that partnerships on the Discover platform “have begun to bear fruit.”